Who else has relatives caught up in rapture fever?

[txaslftist]

When I went to visit my brother in San Angelo for thanksgiving, he wanted to introduce my 8 year old daughter to the "Left Behind" series of books. I told him I thought that "end of the world" fiction was not appropriate. He replied that the "Left Behind" series has a version for KIDS.

I still thought this was extremely wierd, not to mention disturbing. "I'm not a big fan of apocalyptic fiction." I told him. "It's only fiction until it happens." Was his reply.

Growing up I was given Hal Lindsey's book "1980s, Countdown to Armageddon" by my father, who was also a big fan of Nostradamus' quatrains, which he could empirically demonstrate showed that 'sometime around the year 2000' Armageddon was coming, led by a man in a 'blue turban' from the middle east.

The only thing consistenly true about the end of the world/rapture predictions throughout the centuries since the book was conditionally accepted during the cannonization process is that they haven't happened (and won't IMHO). Nonetheless, millenialism is HUGE right now. Bill Moyers even spoke about it.

Whattaya think? Wacky goofballism run amock or End Times is Nigh?

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. Minister FIL got LEFT BEHIND the movie for Xmas

:eyes:


Keep that stuff AWAY from children. It's dangerous. Read books about the fallacy of the rapture instead.

------------------------------------
Would Jesus love a liberal? You bet!
http://timeforachange.bluelemur.com/

[demnan]

2. Maybe the Tsunami in Asia

was the rapture, and God only wants poor Hindus and a few internationalists?

[txaslftist]

12. Ghandi was a hindu, and had a better...

grasp of what was important than most of the so-called christians around these parts. I wouldn't sell your theory too short.

[redqueen]

3. Wacky goofballism run amock !

Did you happen to mention all that rapture crap was made up in the 1700's?

MORANS!

[mr_hat]

4. I've thought about leaving a bunch of shoes

with dry ice in them in a church parking lot, before the Sunday sermon ends.

[AllyCat]

10. Oh Please do this!

And get a picture or five. I cannot imagine how funny that would be!

:evilgrin:

[txaslftist]

11. Okay, that would be funny, but...

they would probably believe the shoes and clothes belonged to heathens struck down for having the effrontery to approach their holy shrine.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

5. So this little girl in Scotland...

With a fuck of a case of Histrionic Personality Disorder starts announcing she has been having dreams. To everyone and everything that moves. Some enterprising preachers see an opportunity to shake some action, so they stripmine some scripture for a few supporting verses and then off they go and we have "The Rapture".

Fast forward and the uber-slimy Tim LeHaye updates it for today.

As far as I am concerned, it is tailor-made for turning people into mindless drones, bereft of spirital discernment and willing to allow anything to happen in the world, since the dance is almost over.

[EC]

6. There was a show on tv, either

pbs or the discovery channel, on this subject. First they started out showing how cults are formed in this way, using an event like the rapture to get devote followers, including James Jones, Manson, and David Kurish...They then explored the original interpretations of Revelations and the meaning of Armogeden...the rapture is a distorted reading and a fraud... This was discussed by many theologians and laypeople and all agreed that the rapture is a piece of fiction and the fundies are basically a cult...

[redqueen]

7. Wow

I'd really like to know the name of that show, if you remember.

[EC]

9. I think it was

something like countdown to Armageddon or something...it was just this last weekend, so it should still be on, it was followed by Nostradamus, so I'm pretty sure it was geared for New Years programing

[redqueen]

13. Thanks!

I'll look for it.

:hi:

[txaslftist]

8. My pastor says the same thing...

but he says the millenial determinists are in the majority here in the panhandle of Texas. It's spooky, because its something I wouldn't even feel comfortable discussing with someone else, but someone sure is buying all those books.